although i take a train (subway) everyday to and from the office, i love sitting in a train where i can watch the world outside rush by.
even better is having the windows wide open and feeling the world outside rush by.
we did a day drip from bangkok to the siamese kingdom of ayutthaya; thailand's ancient capital until its destruction by the burmese army in 1767. today it is a UNESCO world heritage site.
the train journey took around two hours and only cost 15 baht (that's like 0.33 euro!).
the last time i went to ayutthaya was about 10 years ago and i was looking forward to be wow-ed again.
i would take my hat off to k-chan if i had one (i left my favorite hat; a gift from k-chan's parents, in the back seat of a bangkok taxi...) as she did exceptionally well getting around in thailand while six months pregnant.
i know i wouldn't have been the best of company having to carry around that extra weight in the heat (38 degrees!) while wearing a support around my waist.
because the ancient city ruins of ayutthaya are spread over a huge area, we hired a tuk-tuk for the day as there was no way k-chan was gonna get on a bike (or me for that matter, man it was hot!)
here are some of the many sights we saw in ayutthaya.
wat maha that (วัดมหาธาตุ พระนครศรีอยุธยา).
built during the reign of king boromarajaI (1370-88). apparently in 1956 a secret chamber was uncovered in the ruins; among the treasures found inside were gold jewelry, a gold casket containing a relic of the buddha, and some fine tableware.
i wish i was the one who found this treasure!
chedis built during the 15th century to enshrine the ashes of three ayutthaya kings
with the sun setting our train chugged along the track through squatter villages seat-up along route to bangkok.
10 comments:
Oh wow, what beautiful picts!
K-chan is going to be a super-mom. She already proved to you in Thailand :D
stunning pics!
how great that you were able to take the train also.
Welcome to the heat of South East Asia! I see you drew the sun to illustrate a point. Hee.
How can she even walk around the heat at six months! O.o Wow, she's a trooper! I can't even bear to be outside, and I'm not with child. O.o
I would love to see the ruins someday, then take a bus to Cambodia for Angkor Wat.
* pascale
yeah, we are both pretty excited about the new addition to our small family in a few more months. i'm 100% sure k-chan will be a great mum.
* Mary
the train is definitely the way to go. i hate to think what it would be like sitting in a taxi trying to get out of bangkok in the traffic we saw.
the train heading back to bangkok was really interesting, full of people traveling from northern thailand; great for people watching!
* gingerbee
i started off drawing the top of that chedi as i was shocked to see i had cut it off when i took the shot... and yup, that bright sun will remind me how blimmin hot it was!
yes, angkor wat is a must see!
nice pics! i especially like the first one. the close up of the window. such nice colors....love how the sun comes through..(yes- i am obsessed with the sun. i'm starved up here!)
k chan sounds like a champ. you guys must be so excited. i would be too :)
you and your sun!
i have another "sun" photo for you in my next post. already written but i forgot to bring the photo with me...
i'm suddenly afraid of the sun. i got shoulder-freckles from a few days on the beach in thailand! it's never happened before! wtf!
i think freckles are hot! i always envied my friends who had freckles! i think it's esp. cute on the nose!
Simply beautiful. Spiritual and still so grounded in the mundane as well. Time for me to plan a pilgrimage here. :)
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